Packaging for pharmaceutical products and method and device for its production

ABSTRACT

The device for the production of a packaging for pharmaceutical products includes a forming station for forming troughs in a nonstretchable cover sheet in a stepwise, individual, successive manner, and further includes a transport device for laying the formed cover sheet onto a bottom sheet. This bottom sheet has pockets, which serve to hold the pharmaceutical products, and webs arranged between the pockets, and at least portions of some of the webs have ridges corresponding to the shape of the troughs in the cover sheet. The device further includes a sealing station for sealing the cover sheet to the bottom sheet. This sealing station has two sealing plates shaped in correspondence with the troughs in the cover sheet, thus resulting in the sealing of the cover sheet to the bottom sheet also in the area of the ridges of the bottom sheet.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present patent document claims the benefit of priority to European Patent Application No. EP 09172058.1, filed Oct. 2, 2009, and entitled “PACKAGING FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS AND METHOD AND DEVICE FOR ITS PRODUCTION,” the entire contents of each of which are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD AND BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention pertains to a packaging for pharmaceutical products and to a method and a device for its production.

Pharmaceutical products are packaged in many different ways. Especially frequent is a type of packaging in which a thermally deformable bottom sheet is provided with pockets. The pockets are then filled with the pharmaceutical products and sealed with a nonstretchable cover sheet. An especially well-known example of this type of packaging is the blister strip for tablets or sugar-coated pills, but products in powder form as well as ampules, etc., are also packaged in this way for specific applications.

The pockets in the bottom sheet always project downward, and the cover sheet is smooth and is sealed to the webs of the bottom sheet, which are also smooth.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a device for the production of a packaging for pharmaceutical products which makes it possible to expand possible uses of the packaged pharmaceutical products to additional areas of application.

The device for the production of a packaging for pharmaceutical products comprises:

-   -   a forming station for forming troughs in a nonstretchable cover         sheet in a stepwise, individual, successive manner;     -   a transport device for laying the formed cover sheet onto a         bottom sheet, the bottom sheet comprising pockets, which serve         to hold the pharmaceutical products, and webs arranged between         the pockets, wherein at least portions of some of the webs         comprise ridges corresponding to the shape of the troughs in the         cover sheet; and     -   a sealing station for sealing the cover sheet to the bottom         sheet, the sealing station comprising two sealing plates shaped         in correspondence with the troughs in the cover sheet, thus         resulting in the sealing of the cover sheet to the bottom sheet         also in the area of the ridges of the bottom sheet.

So that the cover sheet can be easily provided, the device preferably comprises an unwinding device for unwinding a partial length of the roll of cover sheet material, a cutting device for cutting off a sheet from the roll, and a feed device for grasping and transporting the cut cover sheet to the forming station.

To form the troughs in the nonstretchable cover sheet, the forming station may comprise two forming tools, which can be moved toward and away from each other, wherein the second forming tool comprises stamping dies, which act successively on the cover sheet, and wherein the first forming tool comprises recesses corresponding to the shape of the stamping dies.

In a preferred embodiment, the stamping dies are arranged in a row which is graduated with respect to height and are pneumatically pretensioned. In this way, it is relatively easy to form troughs mechanically in a nonstretchable cover sheet of, for example, aluminum, which cannot be formed all at once either thermoplastically or by deep-drawing.

To simplify the production process, the first forming tool with the recesses can comprise a suction device for the formed cover sheet and can be part of the transport device. In this embodiment, the first forming tool can rotate around a vertical axis located outside the first forming tool.

To fasten the cover sheet temporarily to the bottom sheet before they are actually sealed together, the device can comprise a spot-fastening device, which is arranged upstream of the sealing station and comprises several heating pins.

The packaging for pharmaceutical products produced with the above device comprises a bottom sheet with pockets, which serve to hold the pharmaceutical products, and with webs arranged between the pockets, and it also comprises a nonstretchable cover sheet, which is sealed to the bottom sheet. Several webs of the bottom sheet comprise a ridge, and the cover sheet comprises integrally formed troughs corresponding to the shape of the ridges. The sealing is also performed between the troughs of the cover sheet and at least portions of the ridges of the bottom sheet.

This design is especially advantageous for certain applications, because as a result, the pockets formed in the bottom sheet do not, or do not only, project downward; instead, the intermediate space formed between the bottom of the pocket and the cover sheet designed to hold the pharmaceutical products can be formed exclusively or at least partially above the straight webs of the bottom sheet. This means that the position of the interior space of the pockets is shifted or expanded upward, and the pharmaceutical products held in the pockets are therefore accessible to new types of further processing and to new applications. For example, in a case such as this, a removal device could be moved horizontally in a straight line to penetrate through the cover sheet and thus allow access to powdered pharmaceutical product present in the pockets.

Since the webs of the bottom sheet are also sealed to the cover sheet in the area of the ridges, this guarantees that the edge areas of the pockets are reliably sealed.

In a preferred embodiment, the bottom sheet comprises alternating first and second sections, wherein each first section is flat and is sealed to the cover sheet, and wherein each second section comprises webs with the ridges, each of which is sealed to a trough of the cover sheet. When in this case the pockets are formed in the area of the second sections of the bottom sheet, the level of the pockets is raised above that of the flat first section of the bottom sheet in an especially simple manner.

The method for the production of packaging for pharmaceutical products comprises the following steps:

-   -   providing a bottom sheet equipped with pockets, which serve to         hold the pharmaceutical products, and with webs arranged between         the pockets, wherein several webs of the bottom sheet comprise a         ridge;     -   providing a nonstretchable cover sheet;     -   forming troughs in the cover sheet corresponding to the shape of         the ridges in a stepwise, individual, successive manner;     -   laying the formed cover sheet on top of the bottom sheet; and     -   sealing the cover sheet to a plurality of the webs of the bottom         sheet.

To guarantee that the pockets are also closed reliably around their edges, the cover sheet is also sealed to a plurality of the webs of the bottom sheet in the area of the ridges.

The provision of the nonstretchable cover sheet comprises preferably the steps of providing a roll of cover sheet material, partially unwinding the roll, cutting off a cover sheet from the roll, grasping this sheet, and transporting it.

To guarantee a preliminary adhesion between the cover sheet and the bottom sheet and to optimize the result of the sealing process, the cover sheet is spot-fastened to the bottom sheet after the formed cover sheet has been laid on top of the bottom sheet but before the cover sheet has been sealed to a plurality of the webs of the bottom sheet.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Additional features and advantages of the present invention can be derived from the following description, which is based on the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the formed bottom sheet and of the cover sheet of one embodiment of the packaging before the sealing process;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the packaging of FIG. 1 in the sealed state;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the device for the production of the packaging for pharmaceutical products according to the invention;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the device of FIG. 3 without the sealing station;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a forming station for forming the troughs in the cover sheet;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the second forming tool of the forming station with stamping dies;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a spot-fastening device for the temporary fastening of the cover sheet to the bottom sheet prior to sealing;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the spot-fastening device of FIG. 7, wherein the heating pins project through openings in the first forming tool of the forming station; and

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the sealing plates of the sealing station.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS

The example of the new packaging for pharmaceutical products shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 comprises a bottom sheet 2 and a cover sheet 4. FIG. 1 shows the bottom sheet 2 and the cover sheet 4 in the separated state which they assume before the sealing process. FIG. 2 shows the sealed end state of the packaging.

The bottom sheet 2 comprises a plurality of pockets 6, which serve to hold pharmaceutical products. The pockets 6 can hold tablets, sugar-coated pills, and liquid substances, but preferably they hold substances in powdered form. Arranged between the pockets 6 of the bottom sheet 2 is a plurality of webs 8 of the bottom sheet 2. Several webs 8 of the bottom sheet 2 comprise an upward-projecting ridge 10. In the example shown here, the bottom sheet 2 comprises first sections 12 alternating with second sections 14. Each of the first sections 12 is flat and does not comprise any pockets 6, whereas the second sections 14 comprise webs 8 with the ridges 10.

The bottom sheet 2 consists of a thermoplastically deformable material and is produced by means of known forming processes, although special forming tools must be used. The cover sheet 4, conversely, consists of a nonstretchable material. Nevertheless, troughs 16 which matingly correspond to the shape of the ridges 10 of the bottom sheet 2 are formed into it. The material of the bottom sheet 2 is usually PVC, PVC/PVDC, or PVC/ACLAR, but other materials can also be used such as aluminum laminates, COC, PS, PP, or PET. The cover sheet 4 is usually made of hard aluminum or aluminum of defined hardness, but it can also consist of some other nonstretchable material such as a laminate of paper and aluminum foil.

The bottom sheet 2 and the cover sheet 4 are sealed together preferably along all the webs 8 of the bottom sheet 2. This means not only that the flat webs 8 of the bottom sheet 2 are sealed to the corresponding flat sections of the cover sheet 4, but also that the webs 8 of the bottom sheet 2 are sealed in the area of the ridges 10 to the cover sheet 4 in the area of its troughs 16. The secure closure of the pockets 6 in the bottom sheet 2 is thus guaranteed.

Many other embodiments of the packaging for pharmaceutical products are possible. In particular, the pockets 6 can extend over a wider area in the ridges 10; the bottoms of the pockets 6 can project farther downward (easily beyond the plane formed by the flat first sections 12); various other ridge patterns can be formed in the bottom sheet 2, etc. The important point in each case is that, in general, a certain number of webs 8 of the bottom sheet 2 comprise a ridge 10 and that the cover sheet 4 comprises molded-in troughs 16 which correspond to the shape of the ridges 10 and are sealed to them.

FIGS. 3 and 4 show a preferred embodiment of a device for the production of the packaging for pharmaceutical products according to FIGS. 1 and 2.

The device comprises an unwinding device 18 for partially unwinding a roll 20 of cover sheet material, a cutting device 22 for cutting off a cover sheet 4, and a feed mechanism 23 for gripping the cover sheet 4 and carrying it forward. In addition, it comprises a forming station 24, a transport device 26 for laying the formed cover sheet 4 on top of the bottom sheet 2, a spot-fastening device 28 for temporarily fastening the cover sheet 4 to the bottom sheet 2, and a sealing station 30 (shown only in FIG. 3), arranged downstream from the spot-fastening device 28, for sealing the cover sheet 4 to a plurality of the webs 8 of the bottom sheet 2.

Providing the smooth cover sheet 4 prior to the forming of the troughs 16 can also be accomplished by auxiliary means other than those shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. The feed mechanism 23 for feeding the cover sheet 4 from the cutting device 22 to the forming station 24 can also be designed in any other suitable way, but a gripping or clamping mechanism acting on the forward edge of the cover sheet 4 is preferred.

The forming station 24 consists of a first forming tool 32 and a second forming tool 34, which can be moved toward and away from each other. A more detailed explanation is given below with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.

The embodiment of the transport device 26 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 comprises two parts. The first part serves to transport the cover sheet 4 from the forming station 24 to the second part, which transports the pairs of sheets, i.e., the cover sheet 4 lying on top of the bottom sheet 2, to the sealing station 30.

The first part of the transport device 26 is designed to rotate around an axis of rotation Z. For this purpose, a shaft 36 is supported rotatably in a bearing device 38 and can be rotated by 180° by a drive (not shown). At the bottom end of the shaft 36, first forming tools 32 extend horizontally to the right and to the left of the shaft 36 as mirror images of each other. This guarantees that one of the first forming tools 32 will always be present in the forming station 24, whereas the other first forming tool will always be 180° away from its partner, thus serving to transport the cover sheet 4. Each rotation of the transport device 26 by 180° around the axis Z causes the two first forming tools 32 to switch places. A suction device with vacuum drawing openings, which firmly hold the formed cover sheet 4 on the first forming tool 32, is preferably present in the first forming tools 32, so that, even during the 180° rotation around the axis Z, the cover sheet 4 remains securely attached to the first forming tool 32.

The first part of the transport device 26 can also be designed in various other ways, however. For example, a gripping device or a pick-and-place device can take the formed cover sheet 4 from the forming station 24 and convey it to the sealing station 30. It is also possible to select a rotational arrangement different from that shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. The shaft 36, furthermore, can also be supported at its bottom end in the bearing device 38. The person skilled in the art will be able to devise many other modifications.

A feed mechanism can also be used as the second part of the transport device 26; this can be, for example, a gripping arm or a traveling vacuum suction belt. The two sheets, i.e., the cover sheet 4 and the bottom sheet 2, which are lying on top of each other and possibly spot-fastened to each other, can be transported to the sealing station 30 in this way.

It is also conceivable that the transport device 26 could consist of only a single part and could lay the cover sheet 4 directly on a bottom sheet 2 which has already been placed in the sealing station 30.

The spot-fastening device 28 is explained in greater detail below with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8.

The sealing station 30 is shown in detail in FIG. 9 and comprises two sealing plates 40, which are shaped to correspond to the troughs 16 in the cover sheet 4 and which can be moved toward and away from each other.

FIGS. 5 and 6 show a preferred embodiment of the forming station 24 in detail. The first forming tool 32 comprises recesses 42, which correspond to the shape of the troughs 16, which are to be formed in the cover sheet 4. The second forming tool 34, conversely, comprises stamping dies 44, which are complementary to the shape of the recesses 42. In the embodiment shown here, the stamping dies are designed as rollers, but they can have any other shape adapted to the desired shape of the troughs 16 in the cover sheet 4. The stamping dies 44 are supported on lateral guides 46 so that they can move up and down and are set in motion by single-acting pneumatic cylinders 48 acting preferably on the central area of the stamping dies 44.

The stamping dies 44 are arranged in a row of graduated height and are pneumatically pretensioned by the pneumatic cylinders 48. When the two forming tools 32, 34 now move toward each other, contact will occur first between the forward most stamping die 44 and the forward most recess 42, as a result of which a trough 16 will be formed in the cover sheet 4, whereas there is as yet no contact between the other stamping dies 44 and the other recesses 42; that is, the rear part of the cover sheet 4 is not yet clamped. Thus one trough 16 after the other is formed in succession in the nonstretchable cover sheet 4 until the last stamping die 44, i.e., the stamping die in the rearmost position, has engaged in the corresponding recess 42. The time which passes between the individual forming operation for one trough 16 and that for the adjacent trough is usually one or two seconds.

As can be seen especially clearly in FIG. 6, the heights of the individual stamping dies 44 can be graduated by providing shims 50, for example, in the area of the lateral guides 46 to limit the stroke.

Many other possibilities can also be conceived for guaranteeing that the stamping dies 44 act individually, one after the other, on the cover sheet 4. For example, each of the stamping dies 44 could be actively moved upward individually, but this, of course, would require greater effort than the mechanically determined graduation of the heights of the stamping dies 44 as realized in the present example. The important point in any case is that the individual troughs 16 are formed one after the other, stepwise, in the nonstretchable cover sheet 4, because only in this way is it possible to form the troughs 16 uniformly. One end of the cover sheet 4 must therefore be free to move freely, so that the material of the cover sheet 4 can be drawn forward as a trough 16 is being produced.

It is also possible, of course, to switch the arrangement of the first forming tool 32 and the second forming tool 34 in mirror-image fashion.

FIGS. 7 and 8 show the spot-fastening device 28 in detail. To prevent the cover sheet 4 and the bottom sheet 2 from sliding over each other after one has been laid on top of the other and before they are sealed together, it can be helpful to provide a spot-fastening device 28, which spot-fastens the cover sheet 4 and the bottom sheet 2 together. For this purpose, the spot-fastening device 28 comprises heating pins 52, which are arranged in a predetermined pattern. The heating pins 52 preferably act on the flat webs 8 in the area of the first sections 12 of the bottom sheet 2 and the corresponding sections of the cover sheet 4. The spot-fastening device 28 can be moved vertically by a stroke arm 54. The heating pins 52 are preferably supported on spring elements 56 and pass through openings 58 in the first forming tools 32.

In the embodiment shown here, the method for the production of a packaging for pharmaceutical products therefore proceeds as follows: First, the roll 20 of cover sheet material is unwound by the unwinding device 18, and a cover sheet 4 is cut off by the cutting device 22. Then the cover sheet 4 is gripped by the feed mechanism 23 and conveyed to the forming station 24. Alternatively, a cover sheet 4 is provided in some other way.

Then the desired troughs 16 are formed individually, one after the other, in the cover sheet 4 in a stepwise manner. The aspects explained above with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6 are to be noted.

After the troughs 16 have been formed in the cover sheet 4, this sheet is conveyed further along by the transport device 26 and laid on top of a bottom sheet 2, which has also been formed. In the exemplary embodiment shown here, the formed cover sheet 4 is drawn by suction onto the first forming tool 32 and rotated by 180° around the axis Z by the rotatable shaft 36.

After the cover sheet 4 and the bottom sheet 2 have been laid on top of each other, the spot-fastening device 28 can be actuated. For this purpose, in the exemplary embodiment shown here, the stroke arm 54 is lowered, so that the heating pins 52 pass through the openings 58 in the first forming tool 32 and spot-fasten the cover sheet 4 to corresponding points of the bottom sheet 2.

Then the fastened-together pair consisting of the cover sheet 4 and the bottom sheet 2 is conveyed to the sealing station 30, where the two sheets are sealed to each other by appropriately designed sealing plates 40. 

1. A device for the production of a packaging for pharmaceutical products, comprising: a forming station for forming troughs in a nonstretchable cover sheet in a stepwise, individual, successive manner; a transport device for laying the formed cover sheet onto a bottom sheet, the bottom sheet comprising pockets, which serve to hold the pharmaceutical products, and webs arranged between the pockets, wherein at least portions of some of the webs comprise ridges corresponding to the shape of the troughs in the cover sheet; and a sealing station for sealing the cover sheet to the bottom sheet, the sealing station comprising two sealing plates shaped in correspondence with the troughs in the cover sheet, thus resulting in the sealing of the cover sheet to the bottom sheet also in the area of the ridges of the bottom sheet.
 2. The device according to claim 1, further comprising: an unwinding device for partially unwinding a roll of a cover sheet material, a cutting device for cutting off a cover sheet from the roll, and a feed mechanism for gripping and transporting the cut cover sheet to the forming station.
 3. The device according to claim 1, wherein the forming station for the cover sheet comprises first and second forming tools, which are movable toward and away from each other, wherein the second forming tool comprises stamping dies, which act successively on the cover sheet, and the first forming tool comprises recesses corresponding to the shape of the stamping dies.
 4. The device according to claim 3, wherein the stamping dies are arranged in a row of graduated height and are pneumatically pretensioned.
 5. The device according to claim 1, wherein the first forming tool comprises a suction device for the cover sheet.
 6. The device according to claim 5, wherein the first forming tool is part of the transport device and is rotatable around a vertical axis located outside the first forming tool.
 7. The device according to claim 1, further comprising a spot-fastening device for temporarily fastening the cover sheet to the bottom sheet, the spot-fastening device being arranged upstream of the sealing station and comprising several heating pins. 